I had a power steering fluid leak issue years ago and had that fixed, but just had the rack fail completely the other day. The temp was below zero and I had let the truck warm up for 10-15 mins but as soon as I pulled out of the driveway and tried to turn the steering wheel seized up and it dumped all the fluid out of the passenger side steering boot. I'm not sure if the part was just ready to go and this was the last straw or if I just needed to let it warm up longer, but it definitely is expensive. Also what is up with having to pay $750 dollars for a new rack through the dealership when I see new Mopar ones for $400 online?

Try this on for size. I have owned this truck for 4 years now. Bought it used with 40,000 miles on it. I love my truck but..... It started with power steering pumps going out. 3 of them... I do all my own work to my vehicles but consider myself a competent mechanic. After replacing this pump 3 different times i noticed that my rack and pinion was leaking as well. So after some research, I realized that this is what is causing my power steering pumps to go out. So I forked over 400 bones to get a refurbished rack and pinion. After installing it I still didn't have power steering, so I replaced the pump again. (#4). This seemed to fix the problem for just under a year. then my pump went out again. i figured at this point it was a refurbished pump problem. So i replace the pump again. Well a few months down the road I was doing some light off-roading, when I heard this POP! and lost power steering. I looked under the hood and noticed that my pump pulley had spun itself off of the metal center that is pressed onto the pump shaft. So i babied it home. Replaced the pulley just to find that this little ordeal had hosed the pump. So here goes pump #5. shortly thereafter, I lost it again but this time it was the rack. not the pump. I figured it was the manufacturer of the rack. So I changed suppliers. So here's rack #3. Upon installing this rack I drove my truck for a few months and had my pump go out again. At this point I talked with as many mechanics as i possibly could. To no avail. So i replace the pump #6. this one was fine for another few months..... then it started whining and steering started failing. So at this point I did a makeover on the front end. new control arms, power steering hoses, ball joints CV axles, tie rod ends, etc. with a new pump.#7. This lasted about a year and a half. I was on my way home from meeting a realtor when in the middle of a turn lost all steering again. I think I invented new swear words at this point. I got it home and popped the hood figuring it was the pump again........ WRONG!!! I blew a seal in the rack and pinoin. So I am down to my last go at it. I am replacing the rack and pinon again, along with a new pump, at the same exact time. If this doesnt fix it then I dont know what will. I will post agian if this fix lasts for more than a year. To all you other Dodge Ram 1500 owners, Good luck....

I wrote to Chrysler via e-mail and received a reply asking for documents and receipts. I send the original work order and receipts from the dealer (Dealer was a great help through all of this) about a month ago. I received a phone call from Chrysler today and they told me they are sending me a check for $816.00. I don't have copy of the receipts in front of me, but I believe this is the TOTAL COST OF ALL THE PARTS. I am very happy to tell all about this. I think because of the very low miles on my truck they knew I was not at fault in causing this failure of parts.

Thanks Chrysler for doing the right thing, now please look into the others who have filed complaints here and do what is right for them.

Jim

Update from Jun 6, 2009: I just wanted to post so corrections to my post on Feb 24,2009 since I was so P.O I didn't have some dates and cost correctly posted. I went and reviewed my invoices and here are the corrected dates and cost.

Replaced Rack & Pinion on/about Dec.30,2008 Cost $1,043.11 Replaced Power Steering pump & related parts on Mar.04,2009 Cost $ 592.30 Total Cost $1,635.40

My dealer has been great through all of this and gave me a discount where he could, but this is a Chrysler problem, not a dealer problem. I have written to Chrysler with the above information and will let you know what they say.

I just picked up the truck from the dealer and will watch the driveway for any more leaks. Hopefully there will be no other problems with my vehicle. I am considering trading it off now that it is fixed. I have lost confidence in it. These parts should not have failed. I am glad I was not traveling down the freeway at 75 mph when the rack and pinion or power steering pump went out. It would be a real problem to steer this without the aid of power steering.

I own a 2004 Dodge Ram 1500 Quad Cab 1500 SLT Hemi. I am the original owner & the vehicle has ONLY 31,600 miles on it. It has never been off road and looks brand new. Last week I noticed a 6 inch puddle of power steering fluid in my driveway. I took it to the nearest dodge dealer. See below.

Remember this truck has only 31,600 miles and is less than 5 years old. It has had regular oil changes at 3,000 miles. Looks like a new vehicle,no dents,dings,rust.

Replaced Rack & Pinion last week...Cost $1,100 Back to the dealer today, leaking power steering fluid again. I thought MAYBE a loose fitting from replacing the rack & pinion. No such luck, today its the Power Steering Pump and hoses.....another $600+. It's getting real hard for me to justify buying another chrysler product. After spending almost $2K on a vehicle with less than 32,000 miles on it.

I am thinking that very soon I may be driving a Honda CRV.

Update from May 26, 2009: I wrote to Chrysler via e-mail and received a reply asking for documents and receipts. I send the original work order and receipts from the dealer (Dealer was a great help through all of this) about a month ago. I received a phone call from Chrysler today and they told me they are sending me a check for $816.00. I don't have copy of the receipts in front of me, but I believe this is the TOTAL COST OF ALL THE PARTS.

I am very happy to tell all about this. I think because of the very low miles on my truck they knew I was not at fault in causing this failure of parts.

Thanks Chrysler for doing the right thing, now please look into the others who have filed complaints here and do what is right for them.

Jim

i have had this truck since October 07. the list of trouble is long in November front diff burst onto flames driving down the highway ,warranty fixed it but dealership would not clean all the oil off bottom of truck or the fire smell from inside .On jan 28 the rack and pinion seal blew left me with no steering ,this is obviously a big problem the dealer had o

one in stock. now on feb 7 i drove in to town from a 2 hour highway trip when i came to a stop i lost all oil pressure apparently a oil line or pvc valve froze up draining all my engine oil . the damage s unknown i imagine they will fix the pvc fill it with oil and the engine should last for 25000km until the warranty is done ,then i can pay 5000 plus for the replacement THIS TRUCK IS JUNK I WILL NEVER OWN ANOTHER DODGE IN MY LIFE.

Today as my wife was coming home from work the rack and pinion blew out. The truck was very hard for her to steer and she almost ran right into a building. The truck only has 44000 miles on it. This is completely absurd on how dodge could build such a piece of Sh**! I called a Dodge dealer today, asked them if this has been a problem on these trucks and they said that they haven't heard of any problems with steering racks on the Dodge trucks. I was told that this was not a warranty item. I have been a mopar fan for many years and between this and my 2001 Intrepid that i sold to the junk yard with blown motor and steering issues I have had enough!

Alright here's my dilemma; I purchased a used 2004 Ram 1500 4x4 with about 50,000 miles on it from a dealer with the remainder of the factory warranty. During my last service visit, the mechanic said that my Rack and Pinion Steering Unit is going and will need to be replaced soon.

In case you haven't read the rest of the problems listed on this site related to this - You lose ALL ASSISTED STEERING FROM THE VEHICLE IF THIS ABOVE PART FAILS. My truck weighs over 6100lbs empty... that's a lot of weight to move by hand on a rather slippery steering wheel with no electrical assists.

My dilemma is that I can either fix it for the required amount (over $700 - The warranty doesn't cover this part) or just sell it. I love the truck, but this combined with the mpg and repeated recalls is testing my faith in Mopar.

Buy with caution; especially when it's used.